What Joel Embiid Can’t Travel Without

The all-star basketball player always brings his PlayStation, ChapStick and cologne.

Image

CreditCreditEstelle Morris

By Nell McShane Wulfhart

Feb. 13, 2018

The basketball player Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers is almost as famous for his playful grandstanding as his considerable skills on the court. The 23-year-old, who grew up in Cameroon, has become synonymous with the concept of “The Process,” a strategy for long-term talent building that originated with the former 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie — Mr. Embiid famously punctuates his feisty tweets with the phrase. Currently in his second season with Philadelphia, Mr. Embiid will play in the N.B.A. All-Star game in Los Angeles on Feb. 18.

Mr. Embiid spends much of the year on the road, traveling for games. “Generally, commercial flights aren’t designed to accommodate someone my size — and I get it, there aren’t many people that are 7-foot 2,” he said. “I just don’t feel comfortable since I don’t exactly fit.” Fortunately the team usually travels by charter, which has more room to spread out.

When Mr. Embiid travels, he usually spends his free time on his PlayStation, not partying. “A lot of my teammates party in L.A. and I have a lot of friends in L.A., but L.A. is like the only city. Maybe New York but that’s about it. Other than that, I just want to chill and play video games.”

He said he doesn’t get sick of the travel. “We travel a lot, but that’s what I signed up for, so I never complain about it. We get paid a lot of money to do so, so I’m going to live with it, and I don’t think I would ever get tired of it. Sometimes, you miss the food at home, you miss the people around you, but other than that, you should never get tired of traveling.”

He’s excited to head to Los Angeles for the All-Star game. “It’s my first time being in All-Stars, so this should be fun.” Is he nervous? “I’m not nervous. You know, I like putting on a show. And I feel like those are the biggest days to do it. That’s my element, so I’m going to have a lot of fun.”

Here’s what he takes on every trip.

Image

CreditEstelle Morris

PlayStation

“Everywhere I go, I always have to bring my PlayStation. I’m a big game guy. I play ‘FIFA,’ ‘NBA 2K,’ ‘Madden’ sometimes. Sometimes, ‘Grand Theft Auto.’ Other than that, I play Monopoly and then sometimes I play poker.”

Memento

“I always have a picture of my little brother that died; that’s always in my bag.” (Embiid’s brother Arthur passed away in 2014 at the age of 13.)

ChapStick

“I bring a lot of ChapStick because I lose about a ChapStick a day.”

Image

CreditEstelle Morris

Shoes

“For basketball, the team actually takes care of it, so they carry our shoes and stuff. But my own personal shoes, sometimes we go on the road for like six, seven days, and that’s when I bring about four or five pairs. I have tons and tons of shoes. I’m signed with Adidas, so I kind of have to wear Adidas. The NMDs, that’s what I wear a lot at the moment. I like them, that’s probably one of my favorite pairs of Adidas. And then when I have to dress up nice, I wear Giuseppes [the designer Giuseppe Zanotti]. I like Guiseppes a lot because they’re flashy — gold and all that.”

Nintendo Switch

“I just got a Nintendo Switch. It’s pretty good so I think I might have to bring it everywhere.If I’ve go to go somewhere, and I can’t carry the PlayStation, I can always have the Nintendo Switch.”

Going-Out Clothes

“I’m a simple guy so I always have sweats on. Or sneakers with my face on it. I love myself too much.”

Image

CreditEstelle Morris

Cologne

“I wear this cologne called Baccarat [Baccarat Rouge 540], it’s really good. It’s probably the best I’ve ever had, that’s what I wear a lot. And then I like Creed, I like Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent is pretty good, too, and then Montblanc sometimes. I mix it up every day. Women love when a man smells really good so, you know, I’ve always got to smell good. Every time a woman approaches me, she feels so connected to me because I smell so good.”

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page TR2 of the New York edition with the headline: Joel Embiid Keeps His Lip Balm and Cologne Close.. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe